Class 1 Railroads Expected to Announce Sharp Declines in 2020 Second Quarter Earnings

Class 1 railroads will begin soon to announce their second quarter financial results and the results are expected to be gloomy.

The Institutional Brokers Estimate System projects that earnings of publicly-traded Class I railroad will fall by an average of 32 percent.

IBES projects that Norfolk Southern will take a 49 percent hit in part because it has suffered the steepest traffic declines during the second quarter of 2020.

Class 1 railroads have seen traffic fall by an average of 19 percent and cost cutting measures are not expected to have been enough to offset revenue declines stemming from lost freight traffic.

CSX will report is second quarter earnings on July 22. Canadian National will announce its results on July 21 and NS will report its second quarter finances on July 29.

CN is projected to report that its earnings fell 28 percent while CSX will say its earnings plummeted by 41 percent.

Tags: Canadian National, Class 1 railroad revenue, class 1 railroads, CSX, Institutional Brokers Estimate System, Norfolk Southern, North American Class 1 railroads, railroad earnings